•Summer is coming to an end, and with the ocean waters super heated along the entire seaboard, the tropics are starting to rumble and churn. To take advantage of the increased cyclonic activity, Right Coasters up north are holding heaps of surfing events. Canadian Surfrider member John Fluke said that to kick off the peak of Hurricane Season, Billabong and Surfrider Association of Nova Scotia have teamed up to launch the Billabong/ SANS September Storm Classic on Labor Day weekend from September 1st-4th at Lawrencetown Beach. Between 80 and 100 contestants are expected to come out to compete for more than $2000 in cash and prizes. Additionally, the event is a qualifier for Canadian juniors to gain points and eligibility to surf in the 2006 ISA World Junior Championships in Oz. Both amateur and pro divisions are planned for men and women of all ages. Preregistration is available at local shops, including Lance Moore's infamous Dacane Surf Shop, plus Frozen Ocean, Kannon Beach, Rossignol Surf Shop, and South Shore Surf Shop. For more info, contact Fluke at 902-464-7669 or john.fluke@lighthouselumber.com. •Another event recently held on Northeastern shores was the Town of South Kingston Recreation Department's first-ever surf camps in Rhode Island. One of the sponsors, Peter Pan at Gansett Juice Surf Shop, said almost 100 area kids came out to three separate camps held throughout July and August, where they learned to paddle, catch waves, and safely handle themselves in the various reef and beachbreak conditions along the local coastline. Sessions were held at spots like Matunuck Point, Mary's Bar, Kingston Town Beach, and Trestles Reef, with recreation department officials, local lifeguards, and top ESA competitors on-hand to instruct the aspiring, young rippers. ESA stars at the camps included Jen McGovern, Tim Burnett, Katie Imswiler, and Erica Ferrera.
•Also up in Rhodey, the ESA Rhode Island State Surfing Championships went off with a spectacular display of boardriding at Narragansett Town Beach this August. In addition to standard heats, the comp included a new Retro division, where competitors rode shortboards predating 1985. Ana Barend, a 30-something female from Little Compton who chose to surf on a Richie Collins Model Wave Tools thruster shaped back in 1980, wowed the crowds by nabbing 1st-place in not just the Women's Retro final over Jen McGovern, Katie Imswiler, and Kate Ryan, but she also beat out a veteran field of male competitors to take the Open Shortboard division, as well. And you thought women couldn't surf as well as men. •Speaking of the ESA, it was announced at the beginning of August that Fortress Worldwide will now be the official timing sponsor of all ESA events. Fortress, a new action sports-based watch company out of Bonsall, CA, has reached out heavily to support the East Coast surf community. Visit www.fortressworldwide.com to learn more about the upstart timepiece biz. •One bloke making the most of his time is former ESM Associate Editor Mike Fish. Just three months out of his old gig, the Fishster is back home in his native Connecticut and blowing up as a freelance wordsmith. He's already penned several articles for Transworld Surf, including two pieces in their August issue: a write-up on shaping machines for their Surf Science column and a profile on New Jersey for their Fall travel feature. Best of all, immediately following September Surf Expo, Mike will be heading out on his first mag-sponsored surf trip. TWS and Volcom will be footing the bill for Fish to travel to the Caribbean isle of Barbados with a handful of the most talented Volcom wahines, including Aussie Claire Bevilacqua, Hawaii's Coco Ho, Florida's Sarah Hoffert, and Texas native-turned-North Shore resident Danielle Dodson. Volcom photog Tom Carey, point man Sean Slater, and teamrider Blake Jones will also tag along as chaperones to make sure the ladies don't try to take advantage of Fish's boyish good looks and nice-guy demeanor. Hey, Mike, if you ever get tired of traveling with all those beautiful women, you're welcome to come back to ESM and help out with these Blahs! •Following the July passing of Massachusetts legend and longtime Levitate Surf and Skate owner Bob Pollard (see Page 26 for the full story), famed East Coast website www.nesurf.com hosted a rocking fundraiser at The Rack in Boston to celebrate Pollard's life and help raise money for his survivors through the Robert H. Pollard Family Trust Fund. The party went down in The Rack's VIP room, which was filled with large-screen plasma TVs blasting surf videos, a heaping spread of hors d'oeuvres and appetizers, as well as plenty of tasty beverages. A huge raffle was held at the end of the night, stoking lucky partygoers out with everything from brand new surfboards and skate gear to surf videos and even two tickets to an upcoming Frank Black concert. But most of all, the event was a testament to Bob Pollard's tremendous influence on the Massachusetts surf community. You may be gone, buddy, but you're not forgotten! If you'd like to help out Bob's family by making a donation, send your check to Robert H. Pollard Family Trust Fund, c/o Eastern Bank, 1932 Ocean St., Marshfield, MA 02050.
•Of course, we also can't forget about our boardriding brethren in the Great Lakes, as the record-setting heat waves, which have sizzled residents in much of the Midwest all summer, have also heated up the usually chilly lake temps. The unseasonably toasty conditions made the 3rd Annual Great Lakes Surf Luau actually live up to its tropical namesake for a change. Sponsored by Third Coast Surf Shop and held August 19th at New Buffalo City Beach, MI, this free, day-long festivity drew throngs of people from across the region. Highlights included the newly added Skimboard Jam, the team paddling relay, live acoustic surf music from local musicians, and tasty grinds provided by New Buffalo Mexican eatery Rios. Hey, if we can't stop global warming, we might as well take advantage of it like these party-hardy Lakers. •Up-and-coming Nova Scotian pro Nico Manos recently returned from an expedition to Indo, and he sent ESM a collection of sick shots showing his travel partner, young Maine ripper Dean Petty, throttling some serious turns and charging through beefy barrels during their trip. With such an advanced repertoire in body and board-testing conditions, it's pretty obvious Maine must be holding some heavy, hollow juice for Petty to practice in while he's home. That, or he's just feeling particularly limber without his typically constricting array of rubber insulation. Either way, the kid farkin' rips. •Nico and the rest of the Eastern Canadian surfing community ought to be aware of a new business development threatening the lineups surrounding the town of Seaforth, Nova Scotia. Save The Waves Coalition told ESM that a new shellfish processing plant is set to be built in Seaforth, which would release untreated effluent directly into the Atlantic, along with threatening to restrict access to the beaches in the area. Although businessmen behind the shellfish plant taut that numerous jobs would be created by the operation, international experts who've studied the situation say the area's pristine natural habitat, which brings hundreds of tourists from around the world to the small town every year, far exceeds the economic benefit of the shellfish plant. To help preserve the rest of Seaforth's precious natural environment, visit www.savethewaves.org and get involved.
•In more green news, Robert Bailey, founder of Surfrider New York City Chapter and Chairman of the newly formed Coastal Marine Resource Center, let us know CMRC's July benefit at East River Park in NYC was a tremendous success. Headlined by superstar musician Moby, the party raised both money and awareness of numerous environmental issues facing the local coastline. Also in attendance was talented South African native-turned-New York surf photographer Grant Myrdal, who donated several of his beautiful ocean-themed images as awards for local environmental leaders. CMRC was founded last year to bring together the region's numerous disparate environmental groups in the region into one, unified body. To see photos from the event or to get involved with the fight to protect the New York waterways, log on to www.thecmrc.org •Heavy-water charger and New York native Will Skudin returned home from his residence in North Carolina to premiere his new surf movie, Headfirst, at Bellmore Theater in Bellmore, NY, on August 10th. In addition to some truly amazing footage of Skudin dropping into more than a few sphincter-tightening big waves, his Unsound teammates Balaram Stack, TJ Gumiela, and Sean Killarney also scored quite a bit of celluloid love in the flick. To see for yourself, look for Headfirst to hit your local shops soon. Compiled by Chris Towery |
